To be fair about half of that increase is due to inflation. And I think clubs have suffered in the last 10-15 years from a lack of investment in stadia/facilities 15-30 years ago requiring either large sums for investment in new stands/stadia/facilities or higher maintenance costs on often unsightly grounds. Plus a large increase in spending on off-field things such as conditioners, sports science, training grounds etc that in the past was probably spent on players wages

Mainly because its a strange business model, its one that has a finite number of opportunities to sell to its customer, you have a fixed number of days that your retail outlet is open for business and they are very limited other than the possibility that you may get between one or five (six?) extra home games every season and thats your lot for that stream of income - you can hardly blame them for wanting to milk the hardcore of supporters for every last bean during those bonus matches.

To throw away an opportunity to charge top whack for one of those bonus games when it might be the last chance you'll get this season is a brave decision, to run the possibility that you might make a loss on that game because of your brave concept would be like a kick in the balls.

You've got to be looking for 10 to 12k for this match or the concept of challenge cup price slashing is doomed, there is no other reason for doing it.

Just a thought but you could go to this draw for £8 then potentially (assuming we win) meet either Sheffield Eagles or Halifax at home at a cost of £20?

I don't think we're talking about throwing away an opportunity to milk the supporters here. Experience suggests a reluctance on the part of said supporters to turn up to be milked. I'm sure if the clubs thought enough people would turn up to pay top whack for it to make it a money-spinning opportunity we wouldn't be having this discussion in the first place.

So it might not be as brave a decision as you're implying. But still shows enough initiative to be applauded IMO.

Do the clubs whose game is televised receive any direct additional monies as a result of their game being shown live on terrestrial tv?
The costs of staging the match are largely marginal.
ie all the regular fixed costs including players etc have been budgeted for in the SL costs.
Cup games are a bonus, therefore any £ though the turnstiles is practically addtional profit.
Add on the income from perimeter & other advertising then clubs should be in clover.
Or at least those clubs that own their own grounds should be.
NB this does only apply to the televised games.
In the days when Leeds pulled in 26000 for the Widnes game, we were lucky if 8000 attended the regular league rounds.

Stewarding, policing and other staffing has a cost though.

Actually, if you're opening the whole ground, I assume you have to be able to steward and police the whole ground, so you might as well have people in it as not?

Fairly minimal in the overall scheme of things I'd have said.
& you should know how many to expect so as to be able to cut your cloth accordingly, although I do appreciate that their are minimum standards to be adhered to so as to comply with ground safety regulations.

Well I personally think this is a good idea, The family are all season ticket holders but at normal price for the Challenge cup game , we would have stayed at home and watched it for free on the BBC.

It will hopefully attract a lot more people to watch the game live, I would have anticipated a crowd of no more than 6000 but now Leeds should travel in good numbers.

Rugby league supporters always seem to have lots of negative thoughts about the game and how it is run but rarely give any positive advice. Come on people the glass is half full not smashed to pieces and laying on the floor.

Damned if they do, damned if they don't. If they charged full price and nobody turned up then everybody would be on here saying that the clubs didn't do enough.

If low ticket prices cheapen and destroy the league, how come the German football league's top flight charges around £8 - £10 for standing fans to attend their very top flight games.

Don't Dortmund get something like 70K - 80K for a home game ?

They must be doing something right at those levels, given the German national side has been consistently good for many years and currently it looks like an all German Champions League Final this season.

Well.... a great rant this... on the positive side I mentioned that I was going to this game to my colleague that I sit next to at work, his reaction "Will it be a good game" I replied "I would have thought so", his reaction "while you are ordering your ticket do you fancy ordering one for me and my 7 year old son!" The last time he went to a game was 1994 at Keighley. If a ticket price of £8 and £3 respectively for him and his son (who has never been to game before) wins over some RL supporters (of any club), then it is the right move, in my book!

I cannot understand why such a positive move by the two clubs produces such negativity from some folks.

I must be in the minority but I really like knock out rugby be it CC or SL payoffs. I think the main reason the CC no longer draws the large crowds of yesteryear is TV. Secondly messing about with its traditional dates has given it a 2nd class status plus of course the advent of the Grand Final has meant the CC Final has lost its exclusivity and end of season highlight position. So the RL spectators have lost the habit of going to a good CC game

This match with the top two Yorkshire clubs both in form should be a cracker and it deserves to have the atmosphere that only a large crowd can provide. It should appeal to the neutrals too. If this price reduction does bring in a good crowd and it is a good game it may kick start a revival for the CC.

Our game is in the entertainment business and as a business must constantly be looking at marketing ideas. Almost every other business sector uses discounts, sales, 2 for 1 etc as a central part of their business plans. The sight and sound of empty stadiums on TV games is a real devaluation of our game and anything that can arrest this decline is to be welcomed.

So I say well done for this initiative.

£16 for the two of us... it'd rude not to go.

is behind the sticks sold out now?? where are they putting us after that!!?

Over 8000 advanced tickets sold so far. So there will be a good attendance which will make the game on national TV look a lot better.
That is how you attract sponsors and make the game of RL more attractive to newbies and sponsors.

Playing to empty stadiums is bad for the image of the game as a whole.